Army Service Corps

The Army Service Corps-the largest and oldest logistic service of the Defence Services, today, completes 232 years of long, dedicated and glorious service to the Nation.

After its modest inception in 1760 as Commissariat Department of East India Company, the three Presidencies of Bengal, Madras and Bombay were amalgamated in 1878 and were designated as the Supply and Transport Corps in 1901, renamed as Indian Army Service Corps in 1923. The prefix ‘Royal’ was used from 1935 to 1950 where after the Corps was allowed to use the National Emblem ‘Ashoka’ in its badge and thus came to be the Army Service Corps with its motto as "Service is our Creed"

The Corps has played vital and dominant role during the two World Wars, Hyderabad and Goa Operations, lndo-Pak conflicts of 1948, 1965 and 1971 and Chinese aggression of 1962. The Corps also provided support to peacekeeping forces of Gaza, Korea, Indo-China, Vietnam and Sri Lanka. For its dedicated service and sacrifices, the Corps has won 9 PVSM, 27 AVSM, 1 AC, 11 VrC, 8 SC, IKC, 21 SM, 49 VSM and 1 Police Medal.

For the past few years, the Corps has taken some concrete steps to economise and reduce spending of Defence expenditure by reducing tinned stuffs, introduction of frozen meat, reduction in establishment and inventory costs and conservation of fuel oils and lubricants. Some innovative ideas like introduction of mobile pumps, reduction of own transport, employment of civil hired transport on Territorial Army concept and reduction of Military Transport would further add to efficiency and economy. In the field of sports and adventure, the Army Service Corps hockey and basketball teams continue to excel and their Motor Cycle Tornadoes have broken four World Records during 1992.

Today the Corps also completes a Century from the time of logistics disorder and fiasco that the British Expeditionary Force suffered during Tirah Campaign in NWFP. The price paid in terms of human and animal lives was so heavy that it taught a lesson to organise Supply and Transport system as a combatant force rather than a contracted civil system. Special committees were convened which recommended far-reaching changes in the organization which are as relevant today as they were almost a century ago. Thus "Order emerged out of Chaos".

Text Source: Lt. Col B.J.S. Chopra, A.S.C.